Commissioner Rob Jones reported late Wed. evening that the "historic" winter storm called for by weatherman around the country had not been too bad for road or emergency crews. “The public has really helped us by staying off the roads,” he said.

Jones said the fire departments had handled a number of downed trees across power lines and roads and power crews had restored service in several locations – all relatively quickly.

“Both Georgia Power and Amicalola EMC have done a great job getting power back on,” he said. He said it seemed like there were power outages somewhere all day, but most were restored fairly quickly.

However, Jones said he predicts overnight and tomorrow morning could see the worst road conditions as all the slush, snow and sleet out there now will likely freeze solid.

Road crews have worked around the clock. Scrapping the slush off as much as possible and salting and sanding. “But it’s coming back in tonight and we can’t do much as the temperatures drop,” he said.

Cove Road, the usual trouble spot at the S Curves, is closed for the night and will be re-evaluated tomorrow morning. Jones said there had been several cars off the road there but all have been moved.

He noted the county is operating an emergency shelter but it had not been used as of 9 p.m. He said it is primarily for anyone who has medical conditions, such as needing oxygen, and whose power goes out overnight. If someone needs to reach the shelter they should call 911.